Ah yes, '80s metal. No, not that big hair/spandex-y stuff, but the kind of metal that provides the perfect soundtrack to the triumph knights must have felt slaying dragons or rescuing damsels in distress back in the good old days. If you long for the medieval metal sounds of Ronnie James Dio and Doro Pesch, then the 2008 release by Lion's Share, Emotional Coma, is right up your alley. Singer Patrick Johansson yelps with the best of them (with a vocal style comparable especially to the two aforementioned metal veterans), while the music is equal parts Euro and thrash metal, and even a few renowned metal guitar shredders drop in on the fun -- former members from both Megadeth (Glen Drover) and Kiss (Bruce Kulick). Give a listen to such triumphant tracks as "Cult of Denial," "The Arsonist," and "Clones of Fate," and you just may feel like storming the nearest castle on horseback. [The CD was also released with bonus tracks.] ~ Greg Prato|

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